Orange-Vanilla Greek Yogurt Pancakes (Whole Grain)

Pancakes are such a treat in my house. My kids get so excited when I tell them I’m making pancakes for breakfast, so excited that I wish I made them more often (their pancake excitement definitely puts a smile on my face!). I usually stick to a whole grain variety, knowing the extra nutrients and fiber are a great way to fill their bellies for the day ahead. They don’t mind.

I haven’t always made my own pancake mix from scratch, and I still don’t always, though after putting these together on a whim this past Saturday morning I really don’t know why I wouldn’t. I followed Skinnytaste’s recipe for whole wheat pancakes, and added a few of my own extras – Greek yogurt and fresh squeezed orange juice – to make them even more bright and delicious.

Everyone loved these and I’ll be making them again soon for sure. I froze the leftovers and have been heating them up in the microwave for quick breakfasts the last couple of days. My daughter finished off the last one just this morning so I think I’ll have to double the batch for next time. Pancakes never last very long around here.

Directions:

In a large bowl mix together flour, salt, baking powder and sugar. Add eggs, Greek yogurt, milk, orange zest and juice. Mix together well until combined. Let sit for a few minutes.

Heat a large nonstick griddle or skillet over medium heat (I use my electric nonstick skillet for pancakes). Spray with nonstick spray, or lightly spread a little butter around pan (I stick a tablespoon or two on a fork and spread this way, it helps to not use more than you need). Using a 1/4 cup scoop, gently pour pancake batter into pan. Let cook until the middle starts to bubble slightly. Carefully flip and cook for a minute or two longer until pancakes are set.

You can use vanilla Greek yogurt in place of plain by omitting the 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract in this recipe. Depending on how much juice you get from your oranges, you may have to add additional milk if batter is too thick.

I love to cook. But I especially LOVE to cook when it’s something my family LOVES. The pancakes you linked to is my go-to recipe to make my girl’s favorite food. I love that they are light and healthy. And she… just LOVES pancakes. So making these is one of my favorite Saturday morning things to do for my family. What I love is that you took it a step further and I’m so anxious to try them your way!!! And you’re right: making a big batch and freezing makes weekday mornings… better. PS ~ Great pics my Friend.

Aggies Kitchenposted January 22, 2013 at 5:16 pm

Yes!! I agree Kim, my kids loving something I cook makes it SOOOO much more enjoyable. It makes me happy!! I didn’t know that this was the pancake recipe you always use, I feel like I should have known that! My kids loved these, can’t wait to play around with other flavors.

Aggie, I’m feeling the urge to use my few remaining Band Fruit Fundraiser oranges to turn this recipe into waffles for my family. I LOVE the addition of orange zest–I bet that totally makes the pancakes.
Your photos are wonderful–thanks!

How perfectly fantastic! I have oodles of oranges from my neighbor’s backyard and tons of greek yogurt in my fridge. These are going to happen. 😀

Jessieposted January 23, 2013 at 9:06 am

So this is how my morning goes – I scan the recipes from about 40 food blogs I subscribe to. Pin the recipes, and put them on an endless queue of things I’d want to make. Sometimes it gets done the following week, some take months. A lot of them – never (sadly). This one had me getting out of bed straight into the kitchen. The thought of making healthy pancakes (no butter?!) just screams “Make it now!!!”. I cut the recipe in half and got about 5-6 medium pancakes. Used a packet of Stevia instead of sugar. They were so good! This will totally replace my go-to pancake recipe. Thank you!

Aggies Kitchenposted January 23, 2013 at 9:08 am

Wow, what a HUGE compliment Jessie! Can’t thank you enough. So glad you enjoyed them!

Made half a batch this morning while waiting for the delivery of my new washing machine! Oh, they were soooooooooo goooooooooood, and being a diabetic, I was able to enjoy pancakes that were not going to throw my blood sugar through the roof. Thank you for posting this great recipe! You are the best!

Hi, I found your website through Kim’s WIW link up. What a FANTASTIC recipe! I have totally pinned this one for future reference, it sounds AMAZING!

Aggies Kitchenposted January 28, 2013 at 9:17 pm

Welcome!!Thank you!:)

teresa gposted January 28, 2013 at 9:27 pm

Made these for dinner tonight. They were declared a hit! In half of them, we put fresh blueberries. The plain ones were good, but the blueberry ones just took the recipe up a whole different level. My son ate 7 or 8 pancakes and thought about having more!

Aggie- these were fabulous! I mixed up the dry and wet ingredients last night and then made these this morning for breakfast. My kids loved them!

Aggies Kitchenposted February 4, 2013 at 6:38 pm

Awesome Mary Ann! I’m going to try that next time and prepare the night before for a GREAT quick breakfast 🙂 Hope you are well!

JBposted February 8, 2013 at 1:52 pm

These look delicious! But I just wanted to check the amount of baking powder with you before I hit the kitchen – is it really four and a half tsps.? That’s a lot more than I’ve used before, but maybe they are extra fluffy?

Aggies Kitchenposted February 8, 2013 at 2:48 pm

Hi there! Yes, 4 1/2 tsp is what I used, I followed that part of recipe from Skinnytaste’s pancakes that I’ve made before & it worked well! Hope you enjoy!

This is my go-to recipe because it is so versatile! I always omit the sugar and sometimes sub in blueberries for citrus. Today I used half ww flour and half oat flour and they were still great. They’re at least 2x more fluffy than standard pancake recipes I’ve tried. Thanks.